Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

I am sure this is your longing and prayer too.

Bless you today, Nancy Campbell

Picture: Some of our grandsons (and a friend) praying together before they go out to bring Jesus to the world around them.

It is impossible for us to work these beautiful attributes up in our own flesh. They come from God. They are the life of Christ. But the amazing truth is that He dwells within us by His Spirit. Therefore, these attributes also belong to us. We are often (I am anyway) of being guilty of not living in the fullness of the redemption Jesus Christ wrought for us upon the cross. He not only died to save us from our sins, but rose again to dwell within us and fill us with His life. He wants to live His life through us. He wants to manifest these beautiful attributes through us.

God’s grace gives us eternal salvation, but God’s grace also enables us live in the power of God right here on earth. Titus 2:11,12 tells us that God’s grace enables us to live “soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.” Not the next world, but this present world! Right in your home. Right in your kitchen when children are screaming, the baby needs you, and everything needs to be done at once and you don’t know where to turn! God’s grace is available for you right now. His godly life, filled with patience, longsuffering, forgiveness, and gentleness is within you now.

Embrace the truth. Thank God for His life within you. Accept it by faith and walk in it. Don’t wallow in your self-pity, but live in the fullness of the life of Christ who dwells within you. This is your victory. This is your glory--CHRIST IN YOU!

May God save us from denying the power of the cross of Jesus Christ and living defeated lives when He wants to live His victorious life in us--in the midst of whatever we face right now!

Be blessed,

Nancy Campbell

THE DAILY LIGHT
I mentioned this devotional book in my post above. We particularly love it because it only has God’s Word. The more of God’s Word we can get into our children the better! One of the great advantages of this devotional is that it provides prepared Scriptures on a certain theme for EVERY MORNING AND EVERY EVENING OF THE YEAR! You don’t have to wonder where to read in the Bible. All you do is turn to the date and it’s all there for you! A marvelous blessing for husbands who don’t feel confident about leading devotions--it’s all prepared for them!

To purchase this book, go to: http://aboverubiesbookstore.mybigcommerce.com/daily-light-on-the-daily-path/

To find out ideas about how we use this book in our home, go to: http://bit.ly/HowWeUseDailyLight

Rev. Edward Taylor Sullivan spoke these words in a sermon: “I walked down the furrow in the field,” said a humble mother who lived on a New Hampshire farm; “I walked down the furrow with the Governor of New Hampshire in my arms, and the Governor of Massachusetts clinging to my skirts.” She said that afterwards, long afterwards, in her old age. For she knew not then, and no one knew, that her two baby boys would be governors of two New England states.”

I love the words of this song, written by a friend of mine:
“Mothers of children, can you not see
The world of tomorrow asleep on your knee?”

You cannot even dream what God has ahead for your children as you are faithful to nurture and train them in God’s ways and His Word of truth. Psalm 22:30, 31 (NLT) says: “Our children will also serve him. Future generations will hear about the wonders of the Lord. His righteous acts will be told to those not yet born. They will hear about everything he has done.”

Be encouraged today,

Nancy Campbell

~ Nancy

Picture: Tom Browning - A Baby's First Book

This is a scary Scripture to give you as mothers, but yes, it does apply to us. We have a responsibility to teach our children God’s ways and also to warn them when they walk down a wrong path. It is sad that some parents do not want to confront their children (or teenagers) or deal too harshly with them in case the reject them or don’t like them any more. They would rather let them go on in their sin and wayward path. This is not faithful parenting.

God holds us responsible as parents to give life-giving counsel to our children even if they don’t like it or take heed to it. Do you notice that the Scripture says that we give it "TO SAVE THEIR LIVES"! Yes, their lives here on earth, but more importantly, their eternal destiny!

God’s grace is always abundant and free when there is repentance, but when our children walk in disobedience and away from God’s path, it is time for warning. Paul picks up the words of Ezekiel in Acts 20:26-28 when he says: “Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am PURE FROM THE BLOOD OF ALL MEN. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.”

Paul wrote to the believers to WARN them (Acts 20:31; 1 Corinthians 4:14; Colossians 1:28; 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 4:6; 5:12, 14; and 2 Thessalonians 3:15).

Dear Mother, this is part of your being a watchman. Be faithful to your task. Their blood is upon your hands if you are not faithful to teach them the whole counsel of God in order to save their lives for this life and for eternity.

Be blessed,

Nancy Campbell

It’s much the same as going out look for land or a new house for your family. I am sure you have done this. This is part of caring for your family, not a career outside the home!

Once this virtuous woman found the land for another vineyard to help feed their family, she didn’t continue to go out each day and buy and sell land for other families. This was part of her watching over the affairs of her family. This is the whole theme of Proverbs 31. It reveals an industrious woman in her home, watching over it from morning until night.

Verse 27 says: “She looks well to the ways of her household.” The words “looks well” is the Hebrew word “tsaphah” and is the same word that is used of “watchmen” in the Bible. It describes the Proverbs 31 woman as a watchwoman over her home--hardworking and productive, guarding her home and her children, keeping watch on everything that happens. Nothing is hidden from her eyes.

It is impossible to be a watchman (a watchwoman) if you are not in the home. A watchman or guard stood at his post. He could not vacate his post while he was on duty. He had to be faithful to guard the city and watch out for enemies lurking around.

God told Ezekiel in Ezekiel 3:17: “Son of man, I have made thee a watchman (“tsaphah” same as “looks well”) unto the house of Israel.” In the same way, God makes each mother a watchman over her home and the children He gives to her. We cannot take our career of Watchmother lightly. We better not vacate our post.

Many blessings to you today from Nancy Campbell

Picture: Nancy harvesting grapes in a vineyard on The Mount of Blessing in the West Bank of Israel.

Two quick EARS are listening to all that you say,
They’re listening to you, Mother and Dad.
Then speak of the things that are lovely and true,
For some day you will wish that you had.

Two swift little FEET follow you all of the day,
They step in the footprints you make.
If you follow God’s paths, they’ll walk there too,
Or stray if His ways you forsake.

Two soft little HANDS have been placed into yours,
They’re trustfully clinging to you.
Today, while they’re pliable, train them aright,
They’ll do what you teach them to do.

A warm little HEART beats to music you make,
To your life notes of love or of hate,
It swings to the rhythm of your life all day,
Do not let it hear love notes too late.

~ Anon.

God has exalted motherhood. He has placed it high in society. It is higher than all other careers. It is manifold and involves so many different areas.

Sadly, this allegory in Ezekiel 19:12-14 ends on a bitter note. “But she was plucked up in fury, she was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up her fruit: her strong rods were broken and withered; and the fire consumed them. And now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty ground. And fire is gone out of a rod of her branches, which hath devoured her fruit, so that she hath no strong rod to be a scepter to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.”

This passage is an up-to-date picture of motherhood in our society today. God exalted motherhood to a high place. He placed mothers in the home to enjoy fruitfulness and protection. But (notice the “but” in the above Scripture) angry hands came along, plucked them out of the home, and planted them in a wilderness. The wilderness in this passage literally speaks of Babylon, which is a type of confusion and deception.

This is where many mothers are planted today. They are misplaced! God intends for them to be in the home, but often they are away from their children whom God gave them to care for. Their wombs are “dried up” (v.12), because they no longer have time to have children. The children they do have are “devoured” (v. 14) by the enemy because they have vacated their post. They are not home to care for them. They have, often ignorantly, been sucked into the sly strategy of the enemy of our souls who wants to rob children of their mothers and mothers of their children.

Satan knows that if he can get mothers out of the home, he can get his hands upon the children and consequently steer the course of the nation. He is terrified of mothers who understand their divine calling and who will not be pushed out of the home, no matter what the situation. He is scared of mothers who are prepared to sacrifice many material things so they can stay home with their children.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

Painting: Mary Cassatt - Mother and Sara Admiring the Baby, 1901

Or maybe I’ll live in a hot, dry desert
Wandering and dying of thirst.
Since in my own home my needs are not met,
Living there is definitely the worst.
The home I dream of holds a wife who’s content;
A woman placidly happy would be heaven-sent.
She’s satisfied, loving and usually unruffled;
Her infrequent criticism she tries to keep muffled.
This wife brings me good;
I feel understood.

I jump down from my roof and run in from the rain;
To be apart from this woman would just be insane!

~ Kim Newhouse

“Better to dwell in a corner of a roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife”
(Proverbs 25:24 TLV).

“Continual dripping on a day of steady rain and a contentious wife are alike”
(Proverbs 27:15 TLV).

“It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome, worrisome wife”
(Proverbs 21:19 TLV).

Read also: Proverbs 19:13 and 21:9.

Hebrews 3:1 states that we are “PARTAKERS of the heavenly calling.”

Hebrews 3;14 states that we are made “PARTAKERS of Christ.”

Hebrews 6:4 states that we have been made “PARTAKERS of the Holy Spirit.”

2 Peter 1:4 states that we have become “PARTAKERS of the divine nature.” The “divine nature”! Not our fleshly nature! Jesus Christ wants to live His divine nature through you! He wants to share it with you. He wants you to share it with Him. Not just at church, but every day and every moment in your home with your children. Right now.

You are not convinced? Listen to John 1:16 talking about Jesus the Word who “was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. . . . And of his FULLNESS HAVE ALL WE RECEIVED, grace for grace.” This is not talking about a scanty bit of grace, but an abundance of grace for every situation you face each day. You share in His fullness!

“Dear Father, please help us to get a glimpse of the glory and divine life that You want us to live in each day. Save us from living on the crumbs and imprisoned to our fleshly reactions when you have invited us to share Your divine nature. Help us to live in the fullness of your grace for every challenge we face. Thank You in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Don’t live normally today, but supernaturally.

Nancy Campbell

We know of course that Sarah was past the time of childbearing. She didn’t believe that such a thing could happen and so God speaks again the second time! Verse 14 says: “Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son” (verse 14).

I believe that God restored Sarah’s cycle so that she could ovulate again and therefore God was able to come and visit her during her “time of life.”

Our “time of life” is also a time of “visitation” from God. We read again about Sarah’s conceiving in Genesis 21:1, 2: “And the Lord VISITED Sarah as he had said and the LORD did unto Sarah AS HE HAD SPOKEN (in Genesis 18:10, 14). For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.”

We read also of God visiting Hannah and giving her children. After Hannah had taken Samuel to live at the temple because she had dedicated him to the Lord, 1 Samuel 2:21 says: “And the LORD VISITED Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters.” She was blessed with five more visitations of God.

What a privilege to be visited by God. A responsibility too. Understanding this truth makes clear what we are actually doing when we choose a plan to stop life during the time of ovulation. We refuse a visitation of God. We thwart the sovereign plans of Almighty God. We say No to life instead of Yes. And when we stop one conception, it is not only one baby, but a dynasty to come!

Love and blessings to you today,

Nancy Campbell

P.S. You can read another story about the “time of life” in 2 Kings 4:16,17.

Picture: I was looking for a picture of a newborn baby. My lovely Above Rubies helper said, “I’ve got one of my mother and baby sister.” This is little Emmaline, about two minutes old. I wish you could see her mother, Misty. This is her ninth baby, and now she is happily expecting No. 10, but she just looks like a teenager.

This is God’s plan--that we build godly generations, from one generation to the next. Perhaps you may not have the privilege of the heritage of a godly generation. Are you the first one in your family to walk with the Lord? Be encouraged. You are now beginning a godly generation! How exciting.

As you nurture your children each day, dear mothers, remember that you are not only mothering for today, but for generations to come. Motherhood is not transient! It’s not just for one day. Your mothering extends to future generations and on to eternity. Every day is a generational day.

Rejoice in this privilege. Take up your responsibility. Isaiah 59:21 (HCSB) says: “‘My Spirit who is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouth of your children, or from the mouth of your children’s children, from now on and forever,’ says the LORD.”

Be encouraged.

Nancy Campbell

There won’t be much satisfaction
Looking back along the way,
Though we kept our house all shining -
If we scolded every day.

Yes I know that little garments
Sadly torn and out of place
Make it hard for tired mother;
Hard to wear a smiling face.

They will leave their home nest shortly;
Some may fly to foreign lands -
Then your house will be in order
But you will sit with empty hands.

So let us all enjoy each minute
Of these lovely childhood days;
Just forget the dust that gathers,
And enjoy their childish ways.

Yesterday they were but babies,
Now they’re with us for awhile
But tomorrow they’ll be going -
Send them onward with a smile!

Anon.

Painting by Steve Hanks.

It's easy to get busy with the things I need to do,
Forgetting that their playful days are fleeting and too few.
O Lord, please help me notice what's important and what's not,
To cherish precious moments and to mother as I ought.

Please keep me from distractions that would rob me of the joy
That you have planned to give me through my precious girls and boys.
Help me teach them of Your ways, this is my highest aim,
I long to see my children live to glorify Your name.

O help me be the model that would draw them to Your throne,
Let me make for them a haven that would turn their hearts to home,
And in these fast and fleeting years, please help me not to miss
The treasure that you give me in each cuddle and each kiss.

Please give to me a child's heart, to see the way they see,
To savor every moment with these ones so dear to me
That when I 'm old and looking back at every blessed year
I will rejoice that I was there to share each joy and tear.

C 1998 Val Halloran Music That Encourages the Heart www.valhalloran.com